STAAR (State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness) — Questions and Answers

Question 1: Which sentence has a subject-verb agreement error?

The dogs bark loudly.
The children plays in the park. (Correct answer)
She runs every morning.
They are going to school.

Correct answer: The children plays in the park.

'The children plays' is incorrect because 'children' is plural and requires the plural verb 'play,' not 'plays.'

Question 2: Which of the following best describes a physical change?

Baking a cake
Rusting iron
Burning wood
Cutting paper (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Cutting paper

Cutting paper is a physical change because the paper's chemical composition does not change, only its size and shape.

Question 3: Which branch of the U.S. government has the power to declare laws unconstitutional?

Judicial (Correct answer)
Executive
Military
Legislative

Correct answer: Judicial

The judicial branch, led by the Supreme Court, has the power of judicial review to declare laws unconstitutional.

Question 4: What is the force that pulls objects toward the center of Earth?

Friction
Magnetism
Buoyancy
Gravity (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Gravity

Gravity is the force that pulls all objects with mass toward each other, including pulling objects toward Earth's center.

Question 5: What is the term for a government policy of keeping trade within its borders by taxing imported goods?

Protectionism (Correct answer)
Isolationism
Imperialism
Free trade

Correct answer: Protectionism

Protectionism involves using tariffs and trade barriers to protect domestic industries from foreign competition.

Question 6: My seatmate and I have become instant friends. The following is a sentence:

a command
a statement (Correct answer)
an exclamation
a question

Correct answer: a statement

Correct answer: a statement The sentence above is a statement.

Question 7: What was the Reconstruction period in U.S. history?

The period following WWII when the U.S. helped rebuild Europe
The period after the Civil War focused on reintegrating Southern states and addressing rights of formerly enslaved people (Correct answer)
The rebuilding of the economy after the Great Depression
The rebuilding of cities after natural disasters

Correct answer: The period after the Civil War focused on reintegrating Southern states and addressing rights of formerly enslaved people

Reconstruction (1865–1877) was the post-Civil War period in which the U.S. government worked to reintegrate Confederate states and define the rights of freed enslaved people.

Question 8: What does a thermometer measure?

Pressure
Temperature (Correct answer)
Volume
Mass

Correct answer: Temperature

A thermometer measures temperature, typically in degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit.

Question 9: What is a 'fact' in a passage?

Something that can be proven true (Correct answer)
Something someone believes
A made-up story
A guess about the future

Correct answer: Something that can be proven true

A fact is something that can be proven to be true.

Question 10: What does 'popular sovereignty' mean in U.S. history?

Only wealthy landowners can vote
The president has supreme authority
Federal law always overrides state law
The people hold ultimate political power (Correct answer)

Correct answer: The people hold ultimate political power

Popular sovereignty is the principle that the authority of government is derived from the consent and will of the people.

Question 11: What is the main function of the circulatory system?

To digest food
To support the body's frame
To transport blood throughout the body (Correct answer)
To filter waste from the blood

Correct answer: To transport blood throughout the body

The circulatory system's main function is to pump and transport blood, nutrients, and oxygen throughout the body.

Question 12: What type of rock forms when magma cools and hardens?

Metamorphic
Sedimentary
Igneous (Correct answer)
Limestone

Correct answer: Igneous

Igneous rock forms when magma or lava cools and solidifies.

Question 13: Which of the following is equivalent to 3/4?

9/12 (Correct answer)
2/6
6/10
4/3

Correct answer: 9/12

9/12 simplifies to 3/4 because both numerator and denominator are multiplied by 3.

Question 14: Which of the following is a producer in an ecosystem?

Eagle
Frog
Grass (Correct answer)
Grasshopper

Correct answer: Grass

Grass is a producer because it makes its own food through photosynthesis using sunlight.

Question 15: What was the main cause of the Civil War?

Conflict over the expansion and continuation of slavery (Correct answer)
Disagreements over foreign trade policies
Arguments about immigration laws
A dispute over the national bank

Correct answer: Conflict over the expansion and continuation of slavery

The Civil War was primarily caused by deep divisions over slavery, especially regarding its expansion into new U.S. territories.

Question 16: Play Pump may resemble a typical merry-go-round, but it is unlikely that your local merry-go-round provides you with water. In some places of the world, when clean water is nearly impossible to come by, Play Pumps are used. Play Pumps use the energy generated by merry-go-round movement to pump water from underground into a storage container for community usage. As a result, the reader can conclude that —

Play Pumps are important in some parts of the world. (Correct answer)
Play Pumps are simple merry-go-rounds.
Play Pumps are very expensive.
Play Pumps are impossible to find.

Correct answer: Play Pumps are important in some parts of the world.

Correct answer: Play Pumps are important in some parts of the world. The reader can conclude that play pumps are important in some parts of the world.

Question 17: What is the term for a government policy of keeping trade within its borders by taxing imported goods?

Protectionism (Correct answer)
Free trade
Imperialism
Isolationism

Correct answer: Protectionism

Protectionism involves using tariffs and trade barriers to protect domestic industries from foreign competition.

Question 18: What is the term for the change from a solid directly to a gas without passing through the liquid state?

Sublimation (Correct answer)
Melting
Condensation
Evaporation

Correct answer: Sublimation

Sublimation is the process by which a solid changes directly into a gas, as seen with dry ice.

Question 19: Which adaptation helps a cactus survive in the desert?

Thick waxy skin to store water (Correct answer)
Hollow stems that collect rain
Long roots that stay near the surface
Large, broad leaves

Correct answer: Thick waxy skin to store water

Cacti have thick, waxy stems that store water, helping them survive long periods without rain.

Question 20: What is the least common multiple (LCM) of 4 and 6?

10
24
12 (Correct answer)
2

Correct answer: 12

The multiples of 4 are 4, 8, 12... and of 6 are 6, 12...; the least common multiple is 12.

Question 21: A food web shows which of the following?

How rocks change over time
The life cycle of one organism
The water cycle in a habitat
How energy moves through an ecosystem (Correct answer)

Correct answer: How energy moves through an ecosystem

A food web shows how energy flows from producers to consumers through feeding relationships in an ecosystem.

Question 22: A triangle has angles measuring 45° and 75°. What is the measure of the third angle?

80°
60° (Correct answer)
50°
55°

Correct answer: 60°

The sum of angles in a triangle is 180°; 180 − 45 − 75 = 60°.

Question 23: Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery?

14th Amendment
13th Amendment (Correct answer)
15th Amendment
19th Amendment

Correct answer: 13th Amendment

The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865, officially abolished slavery throughout the United States.

Question 24: Which of the following best describes the concept of 'checks and balances'?

The federal government collects taxes from states
Citizens vote to check government power
The president balances the federal budget
Each branch of government limits the power of the other branches (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Each branch of government limits the power of the other branches

Checks and balances is a system where each branch of government (legislative, executive, judicial) has powers to limit the other branches.

Question 25: Which of the following is not a noun that is commonly used?

Magazine
Planet
Garden
William (Correct answer)

Correct answer: William

Correct answer: William A, B and D are common nouns and only Choice C represents a Proper noun

Question 26: Which number is a prime number?

23 (Correct answer)
21
15
9

Correct answer: 23

23 has no factors other than 1 and itself, making it a prime number.

Question 27: What does a thermometer measure?

Pressure
Temperature (Correct answer)
Volume
Mass

Correct answer: Temperature

A thermometer measures temperature, typically in degrees Celsius or Fahrenheit.

Question 28: Which word is a synonym for 'happy'?

Angry
Sad
Joyful (Correct answer)
Tired

Correct answer: Joyful

Joyful means the same as happy.

Question 29: What does the term 'manifest destiny' refer to?

The belief that the U.S. should remain neutral in foreign affairs
A policy of free trade with all nations
The right of states to leave the Union
The idea that American expansion across the continent was inevitable and justified (Correct answer)

Correct answer: The idea that American expansion across the continent was inevitable and justified

Manifest Destiny was the 19th-century belief that the United States was destined to expand across North America from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.

Question 30: What is 4.25 + 2.6?

6.31
6.75
6.85 (Correct answer)
7.15

Correct answer: 6.85

Aligning decimal points: 4.25 + 2.60 = 6.85.

Question 31: What is the main purpose of a thesis statement in an essay?

To list supporting evidence
To state the main argument or central idea (Correct answer)
To summarize the conclusion
To provide background information

Correct answer: To state the main argument or central idea

A thesis statement presents the main argument or central claim of an essay, guiding the reader on what the writing will address.

Question 32: Which sentence uses correct end punctuation?

Both B and C are correct. (Correct answer)
Did you finish your homework.
What time is it?
I love Texas!

Correct answer: Both B and C are correct.

Both 'What time is it?' (question mark for a question) and 'I love Texas!' (exclamation mark for excitement) use correct end punctuation.

Question 33: Evaluate the expression: 4 + 3² × 2

26
50
22 (Correct answer)
18

Correct answer: 22

Following order of operations: 3² = 9, then 9 × 2 = 18, then 4 + 18 = 22.

Question 34: What is the economic term for the total value of all goods and services produced in a country in a year?

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Correct answer)
Trade deficit
Inflation
National debt

Correct answer: Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) measures the total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country in a given year.

Question 35: Which layer of Earth is made of liquid rock called magma?

Outer core (Correct answer)
Crust
Inner core
Mantle

Correct answer: Outer core

The outer core is made of liquid iron and nickel, while the mantle contains magma (molten rock).

Question 36: Albert came across a stranded and alone young hippo one day! He knows how to care for baby hippos as a game warden. Albert quickly adopted the hippo and gave him the name Jason. Jason quickly made himself at home with his new family, playing with the dogs and even sleeping indoors. Jason, on the other hand, developed swiftly and soon began smashing furniture! Albert had to begin locking Jason out of the house, but Jason remained a family member. The reader can conclude that this is unusual because —

Jason to break furniture.
Albert to play with wild animals.
humans to care about animals.
hippos to live with humans. (Correct answer)

Correct answer: hippos to live with humans.

Correct answer: hippos to live with humans. The reader can conclude this it is unusual for hippos to live with humans.

Question 37: What is the perimeter of a square with sides of 9 centimeters?

27 cm
81 cm
36 cm (Correct answer)
18 cm

Correct answer: 36 cm

Perimeter of a square = 4 × side length = 4 × 9 = 36 centimeters.

Question 38: Which of the end marks is incorrect?

The rat ran fast!
The rat ran fast.
The rat ran fast] (Correct answer)
The rat ran fast?

Correct answer: The rat ran fast]

Correct answer: The cat ran fast] A sentence should not end with "]"

Question 39: What happens to water when it evaporates?

It turns into water vapor (Correct answer)
It becomes a solid
It freezes into ice
It combines with oxygen

Correct answer: It turns into water vapor

Evaporation is the process where liquid water changes into water vapor (gas) as it absorbs heat energy.

Question 40: In a persuasive text, what is the author's primary purpose?

To inform readers of facts
To describe a scene in detail
To entertain readers with a story
To convince readers to agree with a viewpoint (Correct answer)

Correct answer: To convince readers to agree with a viewpoint

The primary purpose of persuasive writing is to convince the reader to agree with the author's position or take a specific action.

STAAR (State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness)

The STAAR is the state standardized testing program in Texas for grades 3-8 and end-of-course high school exams, assessing students in mathematics, reading language arts, science, and social studies.

Questions

240 min

Time Limit

40%

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These practice questions were written with AI tools. They are not real exam questions. Exam facts are checked against the official sources listed below. Not reviewed by a subject-matter expert. Editorial policy

Sources & references

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tea.texas.gov — Test delivery, fees, exam format, passing score, test dates, time limit · verified Sep 2026